


Sandman, Bring me a Dream

by SocksinSpace



Series: Great Flaws and Shattered Glass [2]
Category: Guardians of Childhood & Related Fandoms, Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: BAMF Sanderson Mansnoozie, Dark Jack, Distrustful Jack Frost, Emotionally constipated Seraphina, Heartbreak, Hurt/Comfort, Jack and Seraphina become kind of allies but she's still struggling, Multi, Nightmares, Nobody knows, Protective E. Aster Bunnymund, References and memories of past torture, Sandy will kick ass if you hurt the snow baby, There will be a ship in this, Unrequited Love, Will she ever figure out what she wants in life?, formerly requited love, the Guardians are protective
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-08
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-04-19 21:07:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14245764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SocksinSpace/pseuds/SocksinSpace
Summary: In the aftermath of the mess that was the past year, Jack finds himself at home with the four people he once would have never expected to show him any kind of care. Hurt, Scared, confused and most of all stuck on the fact that he had afamilyonce. People who had loved him, once upon a time.With all this drama bearing down on him, and a fragile state of mind, will Jack be able to heal? The Guardians are doing their best, but they can only do so much when the person they want to help doesn't trust them.





	1. He Called her 'Mother', He'll do it again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who was hit with sudden INSPIRATION.
> 
> I'll be taking a little more time for the next few chapters, however, so expect only a few updates in the coming month.

It had been a month, and the bastard who sent his sanity down the drain still wasn't awake. he couldn't help it, the bubbling rage he felt at the mere thought of the wretched shadow man who ruined what little he had of a life before their unfortunate meeting. Jack was barely hanging by a thread, spread too thin and mind too tired, and he felt weak for it. A missing arm, a tainted body, the possibility that he would have to be the first Seasonal since the seasons were born to willingly give up his seat of power.

The Grim Reaper himself would be hard-pressed not to feel pity at Jack's seemingly permanent state of disillusionment and anguish.

He stares at himself in the mirror, face blank and thoughts focused on what he saw; Darkened eyes, filled with pain and a hint of fear that would likely never truly leave him, black sclera that allowed him to note the faint luminescence his irises now possessed. Then there were the tendrils, the veiny things that lay beneath his icy cold skin. Dark and inky, like the now-dead fearlings. The tendrils shifted, slowly, almost unnoticeable if one did not pay attention. But Jack did, he couldn't help but notice. The shadowed ring of grey skin that made up his neck was a horrid reminder of how his new appearance came to be. It's easy to forget that one doesn't need to breath when faced with two squeezing hands and the one thing they fear the most.

_'Maybe if I had fought a little harder, none of this would have happened.'_

"Sweet-Tooth?" called a gentle voice that the boy welcomed whole-heartedly. Toothiana really was a lot like his mother, with her gentle nature that belied a fearsome woman that was not to be crossed. Kind but stern, warm but not to be underestimated. Jack took one last loathful look at his disgusting appearance before exiting the bathroom, seeing the deceivingly soft face of one Fairy Queen.

"Hi," he said simply, still unwilling to speak too much. The new echo in his voice disturbed him, made him think of monsters that won't stop, stop, _just stop hurting._ He took a shuddering breath and let himself be embraced by warmth and soft feathers, so much healthier looking than they had been just a month prior. "What do you need?" Jack inquired softly, wrapping his arms around the dainty frame in search of comfort. Out of all the Guardians, Tooth was the only one he had opened up to. He didn't quite trust her, there was a wariness he couldn't shake around all of them, but the fairy woman was the easiest to stay calm around. She just had that air about her, a motherliness and sense of duty.

He liked it, he liked it a lot.

Toothiana brought a tiny hand to card through his soft white hair while she crooned gently into his ear, having noticed the dip in an already awful mood. She had come to find herself growing increasingly attentive to the boy she now saw as her son. He was such a sweet thing, despite his pain. Regardless of the frustration that Bunny expressed as Jack shied away from them, made it clear that he was still broken inside, or the sadness Sandy showed when Jack nearly fainted at the sight of his sand, and the heartbreak when the poor boy went nearly catatonic for the first week they had him after the battle that Nick had, Jack screaming bloody murder at the innocent horse he had carved in hopes that something nice could be made of the child's fear. He had shivered and cried and the only Tooth could calm him then. He had stayed by her side for a short while after recovering from North's innocent gesture. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she retracted just enough to look Jack in the face.

"You were looking at your face again, weren't you?" the Fairy Queen asked, calm and soft as always, careful to show she wasn't angry or upset. The lack of the winter child tensing in her arms was a sign she had succeeded, but nonetheless, he flinched at her words, looking for all the world like a lost babe. "I know what you think of yourself after all that has happened, all the years you spent being hurt. But, Jack, I promise you that just because a part of you has changed, doesn't mean that you're a monster." Jack's bottom lip trembled and his eyes shone with unshed tears. How, how did she seem to know what he was thinking? He was so disgusted with himself, with his eyes and his face and- and his arm. So much had been taken from him, and he was so _angry_ for it, so angry and so broken.

Jack sniffled, hand coming up to rub at his reddening eyes and mask the first tricklings of tears. For a moment he berated himself, thinking that he was a pathetic baby for crying like this. He wanted to push Toothiana away, to run and hide until he calmed down and could save face by pretending nothing happened. But then Tooth's hand lifted his chin to look at her, gaze soft. She was shaking a little, as though suddenly afraid that she would say or do something wrong. Jack stared at her as she mused over what to say, a moment of silence between the two. Then the dam broke, a sob escaping him as he buried his face into a downy soft chest, feathers cradling his head. The Fairy Queen wrapped her arms around him and held Jack close, protective and kind and loving.

Love. Love. Love. Love.

His voice was cracking, breathy and filled with an overwhelming hope that made Toothiana want to cry.

_"Momma."_

She let a few stray tears fall, laying a gentle kiss on Jack's, her _son's_ , head. A wistful smile stretched across her kind face and sweetly she whispered into the sobbing boy's ear, happy for the bit of progress made in his recovery. "I'm right here, sweet-tooth, everything's going to be okay now."

~~~~~~~~

Seraphina paced the floor, wondering what she was going to do about this.

Jack, a seasonal, had been tainted by another.

It wasn't something that happened often, the magical core of a seasonal being much more resolute and steady than most other spirits. It was like trying to crack a rock with a pebble in most cases unless the seasonal being harmed was weakened prior to the attempt, in which case it was much like dumping poison into a moving river and watching it kill all the fish as it flowed downstream. Jack was very much the latter, quick as it was to cause the damage done to his body and core. Before, it was 'fun', happiness, though dulled drastically through the years of torture. After being tainted by Pitch, it was something... Other. Both the same and different, less innocent than it was when the boy was first brought into the world of spirits.

It was irreversible as well, a permanent fixture that Jack would have to live with for the rest of his days.

Frustration made it hard for Seraphina to focus, and after another thirty minutes of pacing and making no headway, she decided instead to make a visit to the poor boy. She hadn't seen him since those first few days after Pitch's unconscious body was moved to her domain to await sentencing. It unnerved her, how the man hadn't woken yet. For now, she would ignore it, a dread brought on from her proximity to the Nightmare King building steadily when she thought of it too hard. 

Taking a deep breath, Mother Nature summoned her archway, made of carved Jade and strangling vines. Stepping through, she found herself in the middle of the old man's yearly hustle and bustle preparing for the Christmas Holiday. Seraphina couldn't help the light sneer at all the clashing colors and annoying cheerful music.

Ignoring the busy-body Yeti and obnoxious Elves, Seraphina made her way to the room she knew was Jack's from her few-day stay after giving him his memories. She still couldn't get his reaction afterward out of her mind.

~ ~ ~

_Jack screamed, changed eyes filling with black tears and quickly spilling down his face as he was assaulted by memory after memory. The love he had and lost, the family he forgot, his sister._

_His perfect, wonderful, innocent sister._

_"Emma." He croaked pitifully, shaking his head as if in denial of what he'd seen. That couldn't have been him, how could he have had something so wonderful, only to forget it like that warmth never mattered? But he knew, deep down he knew that those people, that little girl with starlight in her eyes and the sun in her smile, were his family._

_And he'd never see them again._

_He never even got to say goodbye._

_Seraphina snapped her fingers to get Jack's attention, not wanting to startle him into violence by touching him while he was in such a state. The Winter King's head snapped to her and he wept, body shivering uncontrollably as he regained his bearings. There was such sorrow in those beautiful eyes, so much agony and a part of Seraphina wanted to reach out to him, to cradle this broken child in her arms, views be damned._

_She didn't, however. "The battle is almost over, the fearlings are being driven to dust by the Rabbit and his mini-army of pure-spirited brats. Quite the sight if I do say so myself, not often does one see something so ridiculous as the Easter Bunny fighting alongside pajama-clad children," There was a faint quirk of her lips, a strange expression for one usually privy to either exasperation or rage, or nothing at all. Seraphina frowned again however when Jack just kept staring at her pathetically. A sigh escaped her lips. "Tell me, what is your state of mind now that you have seen your forgotten past?"_

_She refused to acknowledge the pang of sympathy she felt for the child when he whined pitifully in response, face crumpling. "She's gone, they're all gone. I'll never see them again."_

_As the sounds of battle faded into nothing, and the children were whisked off to their homes without ceremony, Seraphina carefully lifted the frail boy into her arms and walked to the Guardians who wait patiently at the sleigh. She does not look him in the eye as she speaks, she cannot, for fear of opening her heart. "You won't, this is true," Seraphina said simply. "But do not forget that they loved you, regardless of where they lay now."_

~ ~ ~

Mother Nature came back to herself upon reaching the door to Jack's quarters and knocked to announce her presence. She found herself unsurprised when the Fairy Queen answered the door.

There was a soft smile on the woman's face in spite of the trail of tears, recently dried, adorning her features. "Hello, Seraphina, it's been a while. Are you here to see Jack?" Seraphina simply nodded her reply, to which Toothiana stood aside to allow her entry. "He's asleep now, has been for an hour. But some progress was made, so I'm hoping that his healing will have a bigger chance of success."

"That is if he does not regress, it is always an unfortunate possibility," Sera replied, watching the sleeping child carefully, thoughtful. Toothiana nodded, somber.

"True, but I'm trying not to think about that right now, just focusing on being there for Jack whenever he lets me in."

As they both watched Jack, one with a hopeful smile, the other losing herself in thought again, neither noticed their magic humming pleasantly between one another.


	2. Dead Man Walking

The man who she once called her Father was dead, in her eyes. This fact was something she had to repeat to herself often, lest she falls victim to his manipulations. Was it an easy task, to look at him and not see a Golden General? A hero? No, and it never would be, even once Pitch woke and his long overdue punishment was dealt, Seraphina would continue to struggle with it. 

Mother Nature sat next to Jack Frost's bed, absently running a hand through his hair. This boy, this spirit, was part of her. MiM may have brought him into existence, but Sera was his keeper. She had failed him, time and time again because she was a broken fool who couldn't bring herself to help a child that only wanted to be seen, to be felt and to be heard. Wasn't Seraphina supposed to be a loving person? The people who spoke her title seemed to think so. Mother Nature was depicted as stern, but loving to all she looked after. Personally, Sera thought herself to be neither.

With a huff, she shook herself from those thoughts and focused on the sleeping Winter King. It was still being discussed whether he would be keeping his title or not, but a decision cannot be made so long as the three other seasons were wearing their bias on their sleeves with such revolting pride. Not one of them cared that the child, younger than the three of them by thousands of years, had been tortured relentlessly. Not one of them understood her newfound concern for the winter season. Seraphina truly had been ignorant of her seasons, to not see how closed their minds were to the balance of things. Each cared only for their seasons, believing them to be the only ones of importance. Winter was just a... a nuisance to the three of them.

Seraphina's frown was murderous as she once again shook herself from her thoughts. _'I am growing quite tired of my wandering mind. Why must I lack focus? It is my ignorance that allowed these tragedies to occur in the first place...'_

A sleepy whimper startled her, looking down into the fearful eyes of her Winter Child. Unbeknownst to herself, the frown she had worn faded rapidly, and her gaze softened. "Worry not, child, I am not angry with you, nor will I bring you harm of any kind. I am simply frustrated with myself. No, I will not elaborate as to why I am feeling frustration," Sera added when she noticed Jack opening his mouth, likely to ask a question she very much had no desire to answer. With a soft sigh, the handsome woman retracted her hand slowly, the child watching her with those ominous eyes he now had, tracking her movements. He was tense, having just woken from yet another dreamless night. No nightmares, thankfully, but nothing that would heal either. "I have been graciously granted permission by the bloated Russian to see you and to request your presence for the next meeting of the seasons. I am hoping that a decision will be made, and even more hopeful that you shall be able to keep your title. To remove you from the position, quite frankly, would leave me feeling... bereft, for your dedication to the season is one I have never seen in a Winter King or Queen before."

Jack seemed thoroughly bewildered by her for a moment, faintly luminous eyes wide and wild in their confusion. And that confusion was quite understandable, considering that this would be the first time in his existence that she had shown any hint at caring for him. Admitting that his potential removal from his Kingship would upset her was likely startling.

The Winter Child's mouth opened and closed in the semblance of a fish, and Seraphina found herself reluctantly amused.

~~~~~~~~

Jack's sleep was blissful and dark, the shadows, for once, feeling as though they weren't going to attack him at the first chance they had. Sandy was the most concerned about Jack's newfound love of the darkness and nighttime, but it was all he had known for the longest time. There was plenty he remembered, now, involving the monster who hurt him. The sweetness that lead Jack on, confusing him and slowly breaking away his willingness to fight. If the monster was being nice, then that meant what he did wasn't so bad, right? At least, that had been his reasoning at the time. But, yes, Jack was fond of the darkness. it was a comfort in the new, loud life he found himself in. The elves were the worst, pestering him and talking in their squeaking tongue he couldn't understand. Nobody would just _leave him be._

The only person he really accepted being close to him was his mother. Blood or not, she treated him kindly, gave him space when he asked, and didn't pry like Aster did when they had their 'therapy sessions'. Pff, more like 'Giant Rabbit screams in frustration' hour. At least it was amusing, but it would have been better if he didn't need the sessions at all. He was perfectly fine, perfectly. fine.

The sound of someone making a displeased noise woke him quicker than he would like to admit, and Jack's eyes opened only minutely to see his surroundings. Above him was- Mother Nature? Running her fingers through his hair. Curious. Jack took the moment to watch her, feigning sleep and staying utterly silent. Well, silent up until the ethereal woman's face morphed into one of percieved fury. _That_ made him whimper in fear, to which she was somewhat quick to calm his worries. Of course, it didn't help very much, considering her treatment of him in the past. Distant and cold, an avoidance that made him want to curl up and die.

Her admission that she would actually _prefer_ to keep Jack in power nearly made him choke.

Later, after an awkward silence for the both of them and a promise from Jack that he would attend, she left him in peace. It wasn't too soon once she'd made her departure that Jack ran to the bathroom and locked the door, grabbing his favorite thing from beneath the floorboards before he entered. It was too easy, really, to hide this from the others; who would expect a child with one arm to find a way to hurt themselves? Much less use razors. He did have legs, after all.

A pleased smile came across his face as he removed his pants for better access to his frozen flesh, clean razor in hand and already frosting over. The anticipation was the best part, in Jack's mind, rivaled only by the feeling when he finally dug the blade into his frozen body. Sometimes he even liked to stare at the wounds on his remaining wrist, still unhealed and a telltale sign that he was dead. Dead and gone to the world of mortals. Not that it mattered anymore, he had believers now. Seven of them, even! The mortal world knew him again, through those children. Jack gave a shuddering sigh, a deranged smile on his face as he stabbed the razor into his flesh, cracking it as he went, thinking of how he'd not been asked about his wounds, obviously self-inflicted. Did they not care? Not suspect? Did they assume it was Pitch's doing? He still had plenty of injuries from his **fun** time with a fearling, unhealing as always and likely to last near to two centuries before disappearing with the faintest shine to his skin where they had been.

Humming pleasantly, eyes focused on the forming wounds, Jack thought of what he would do to Pitch if he could do anything at all. Kill him, maybe? Tear away his arm? Both of them? Oh, Jack would love to hurt the monster, tear him apart, beat him senseless and burn him alive. His anger swelled, and Jack cut deeper, harder, the lines growing more jagged with each thrust of the tiny rectangular blade. _'All... Work...'_ Jack suddenly sobbed, throwing the razor and the box it came from across the room as though it had burned him. All work and no play, all work and no play. _'No.'_ It started with little hiccups, the blade out of sight and now thusly out of mind, eyes filling with inky wetness, whole body shaking and his leg aching beyond belief. The hiccups turned to keening, and then to sobs that wracked his body and made him shiver in anguish. 

With nobody there to calm him, to hold him till the sobbing stopped, Jack, cried endlessly from his perch on the counter, the throbbing in his leg making him wish he could bleed, wish he could bleed and breathe and live. But he couldn't have those things, it would seem.

He cannot die, he cannot live, and it was tearing him apart.

~~~~~~~~

Sandy was worried about Jack after he's been through. He thought maybe he could help, but Jack acts like there's nothing he could do. He doesn't listen to Bunny and ends up leaving in a laughing fit, and North can be a bit much, so he can understand Jack avoiding him. Sandy just wished that Jack would open up just a little bit, maybe if he's patient Jack will let him in so he can help him? It was hard to watch Jack fall apart all the time, locking himself in his room for days at a time and only letting Tooth into his self-proclaimed Sanctuary. Sanderson felt as though he could only watch for the time being.

If that is what he wanted however, Sandy wouldn't push him before he's ready. So, with a sigh, the Sandman turned away from Jack's door, not aware of the boy hiding in the connected bathroom, crying his eyes out.


	3. Snow and Anguish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack cries, Bunny shows up, Sandy saw something interesting

Sandy did his rounds, as it was his duty. The Nightmares still roamed the night though few in number now, so he had his tiny hands full every time he needed to leave the workshop, which was too often for his liking. Though, seeing the lovely dreams of the children he visited made it worth it. Magic, Unicorns, Fairies and numerous other things that left him feeling warm all over. The children had such innocent minds, though he knew not all was well with the world. Sanderson frowned at the thoughts that entered his mind. Children starving all across the world, most with nothing but dreams of a better life, of simple luxuries. If he had a physical heart, it would probably break.

As he flew through the seemingly never-ending night sky that was his domain, he thought of how Jack was doing, if he was alright, what was his state of mind? The boy was troubled, and he knew that it would be a long time coming before he was truly healed, and even then he would always have the memories, the knowledge of what he endured and how it had affected him. Years, centuries lost to him, never to be regained. He could have been experiencing things, living life how he wanted and not around the looming threat of Pitch Black. Sandy's hands clenched into fists at the thought of the Nightmare King. The small man wanted nothing more than to just execute him, but Seraphina couldn't handle killing the man in his coma.

He didn't like the idea of Pitch laying there, _alive,_ in Sera's domain. What if he woke while she was doing her duties, When she was least likely to have her guard up? It bothered him to think of the possibilities, and he'd told her as much. Unfortunately, she wouldn't listen, much to his dismay. He'd have to talk to her again soon...

Sandy paused at a window, peering curiously at the golden dream sand swirling and changing above a little girl's head. She looked to be about five years old at the most, with a dollhouse filled with... were those G.I. Joes?- sitting around a little plastic table. She snoozed peacefully, her cherub face illuminated by her own dream. It was curious to Sandy, the contents of it.

Snowflakes.

~~~~~~~~

Everything back in place, Jack exited the bathroom with sluggish movement. His legs ached miserably and his arm stump throbbed, it was horrible, and Jack took a moment to think about his decisions recently. The things he's done just to feel something that wasn't anguishing over his past. Streams of ice stuck to his face, like little rivers on the surface of his skin. "Why." He asked redundantly, the question pointed at himself more than anyone else. He knew _why._ He knew exactly why.

"Jack?" He turned quickly at the voice, finding himself facing the Giant Rabbit. Jack scowled, looking away in defiance and refusing to answer Bunny. "Jack, I jus'..." A sigh, frustration, and uncertainty all in one, simple sound. "I want... Jus' wanted to say that I'm... sorry." Now _that_ got Jack's attention. His head snapped up so fast one might think he had whiplash, eyes impossibly wide and thoroughly confused. Bunny was... apologizing? No.

"Why?" Jack asked hoarsely, mind racing with ways to explain this apology, all of them involving trickery of some kind. "What are you sorry for? Why are you apologizing?" He sounded skeptical, and rightly so. Bunny wasn't exactly the best when it came to trying to help Jack. Especially not with '68 still fresh in their minds.

~~  
Easter, 1968

Aster was going to kill the spirit that did this, absolutely tear them apart! messing with his holiday... He'd make sure **that** never happened again, Aster was going to make an example of this frost spirit of it was the last thing he did. He hopped with rather excessive speed towards the eye of the storm, the place where he could feel magic swelling and pulsing in rhythm.

"Oi!" he cried out angrily in an attempt to gain the elusive spirit's attention, failing as his voice was swept up by the heavy wind. _"Dammit.."_ Bunny took a deep breath, preparing to try again, when suddenly... 

"Hi hi hi h-hi!" a childlike voice called in front of him.

Inches from his face. 

"What th-" Aster bounded backward at the sight of a very deranged spirit, face cherubic and expression plastered on. The boy's eyes were blank and unseeing, vacant.

 _"Oooh!"_ came the inarticulate noise. "Fluffy! General fluffy buns!"

Aster twitched, expression confused. For a moment there was silence. Then, Bunny remembered why he was here and punched the spirit right in the face. 

~

Hours later

Jack's skin was cracked like a porcelain doll, spiderwebbed and fragile like glass. His eyes swiveled in their sockets, just as blank. Empty. 

He sat up slowly, surrounded by snow and frost. Was it winter already? His vision blurred suddenly, and Jack didn't appear to either care or notice. "Mm.. Hm"

Grabbing the pieces of his staff, Jack carefully froze them together again. He was numb everywhere, though he still took inventory of his injuries. Broken bones in his legs, slashes to his gut, a peculiar pothole in his back, likely from... Who knows what. Jack falls back into the snow, looking at the sky. The sky. When was the last time he saw the sky? He'd have to tend to his legs and face, they were the only things he could really do anything about. Where was he?

Everything is numb.

A shadow looms over him.

~~

"Get out," Jack said without giving Aster a real chance to respond "Just go. Go!" Aster stood there for a moment in shock, face slowly morphing into an expression of annoyance. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could get even the slightest sound out, Jack sent him flying out of the room with a forceful wall of ice hitting him like a trainwreck. Spiraling through the air, Bunny barely managed to grab hold of the walkway's safety railing before he could plummet to the floor far below him.

"Jack!" He called out in a panic, quite shaken from what he'd just experienced as he carefully hoisted himself up to sturdy ground. Aster wobbled in place, staring at the frost spirit before him, a vision of rage.

Jack stood in the doorway to his bedroom, diamond dust swirling in the air. His ominous eyes shone brightly even as they narrowed, gone was his prior grief, lost to anger in the presence of this murderous _stew ingredient_ who had the GAL to apologize. For what? What did he want? It was bad enough that Aster was Jack's ' counselor'. The Winter child would sooner return to the horrid waters he was born from than listen to another sage word from Aster.

No. Just, _no._

"I don't care what you're sorry for, I don't care what you want from me. I don't **CARE** if you mean it! I want you OUT. Of my LIFE! You worthless piece of-" He paused, heaving breaths he didn't need, crying tears that froze and broke away like little crystals. "All I can think of when I look at you is how you beat me to a pulp."

"Jack-"

"No. _No, Aster._ Leave, leave and leave me alone." Jack turned away as he finished speaking, slamming the bedroom door shut behind him. Aster, he stood there a moment longer, ears flat against his skull and a sad, guilty look on his face. He sighed heavily, hunching over and hopping away.


	4. Miscellaneous Events and Paths to Follow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that I've been gone for so long, I was having writer's block and just couldn't get a chapter out! But, it's here, and I hope that I'll be back on track from now on. Enjoy this chapter, dear readers!

He was grasping at straws, desperate and scrabbling for purchase. He weeps at night, his empty, dreamless mind unsuspecting of the world's weight crushing him in sleep. His hand ached, his heart heavy in its woeful state, stomach gnawing for a sustenance it cannot hope to digest.

The mind whirls, thoughts slipping by in rapid succession, taunting and leaving their host teetering on the edge of an abyss, empty. Frozen tears slip beneath black lashes and become streams of dark crystal upon a deathly pale face, red and blue showing through the fae skin in the form of faded webs, forever contracted in the perpetual cold, yet protecting no warmth. Jack swallows the frost building in his mouth, the dainty chips of ice crackling and shattering as they tumble downwards. It wouldn't melt, he knows, and will only escape his body in the form of crystal clouds through his mouth once the buildup is too high. He will wait patiently for the display, having the exact timing down to a T. His thoughts swirl once again, unhinged as always, and he fails to focus on the mundane. All that Jack knows is pain and feeble trust, a trust easily broken by the smallest of things. 

Jack watches the diamond dust float from the ceiling to the ice-crusted floor, the shards that stick from the walls menacing and crystal clear. No shadows, no darkness, just light reflected off each cold surface. Despite the situation, the Winter King thought it quite beautiful. Maybe he would leave it this way, something strangely wonderous to see when he opens his eyes every morning, and before he falls asleep at night-

Chirping from outside his window interrupts him.

"Baby Tooth" Jack says, unsurprised, watching the obvious colorful blur dart in through his open window. Tooth must be at the palace, giving her head fairy a rest. It was nice to see the little sprite, delicate and small, and with a face that was so achingly familiar. It hurt, sometimes, to see his sister in that tiny, precious face.

The little fairy chirruped and gracefully landed on his head, settling gently into the snowy white locks. The routine was second-nature by this point; Fairy comes, fairy sits, fairy sings for a good few hours, fairy dotes, and then fairy leaves. Always the same, every time the tiny birdlike thing came to visit. It was comforting to Jack, however, not a bore or in any way old. The knowledge that something like this was a constant, something that wouldn't change anytime soon, gave Jack a feeling of rare serenity.

Quietly, Jack sat on the bed and listened to Baby Tooth as she began to twitter and chirp a soft tune, Jack's despair long forgotten.

~~~~~~~~

North sat at his desk, forlorn and at a loss for what to do. Bunnymund had come into his office earlier looking worse for wear and exclaimed about how Jack had nearly thrown him from the railings. At first glance, one might believe that the Pooka was angry with the child, but North knew better. Aster was hot-headed yes, but he worried over Jack, same as the rest of them.

Aster just knew to keep things between him and Jack at a constant. It was unpleasant at best to watch them gripe and get nasty with each other, but the large Russian saw the security it gave young Jack, the comfort in familiarity that everyone saw in eerie blue eyes. Bunny stopped his frenzied raving and sighed, long and weary. "Is it awful of me to have hoped he woulda forgotten 'bout '68?" He asked, ears down and eyes filled with guilt. Nicholas stood and walked over to Bunny, placing a massive hand on his furry shoulder. He took a deep breath, and..

"Yes."

Aster spluttered indignantly upon seeing North's serious face, and the man raised a brow in response. "Does not make you awful, but it is awful of you to hope he would forget about that time," He explained calmly. "You did terrible thing, Bunny! Beat the boy and left him to fend for himself afterward. Yes, you felt remorse later, but by that point, he was gone- and likely, now that we know what has been happening to him all these years, with Pitch." Aster's ears drooped again, voice catching in his throat.

"Oh blimey, Pitch... North, what if Pitch was the reason Jack made that blizzard in the first place?" The Pooka began to hyperventilate in his newfound panic. "He said he didn't want me in his life, that he'd never forgive me- Nick, what 'm I gonna do? How can I help the sprog if all I've done is give him more reason to hate me?" Bunny didn't give Nicholas enough time to respond, scurrying out the door and through a tunnel faster than the giant man could blink.

As he raced to the Warren in distress, all he could think was. _'Security my bleedin' arse, if I'm going to help Jack I need to stop with my false face- I hated talkin' to him like such a right bloody bastard anyway.'_

~~~~~~~~

Seraphina was seconds away from destroying Spring, Summer, and Fall with her bare hands.

Once again she was attempting to bring them to reason on the subject of Jack Frost, her Winter King. Tánhuáng, her Spring Lady, was at the forefront of the abuse against Jack she's found. The flower-clad woman admitted to luring the Winter Child into a corner many times in order to 'Take the brat down a peg'. It infuriated her beyond comprehension, eyes blazing with the light of forest fires and embers descending around her. She was a vision of rage, and the seasons all cowered before her.

 _"You have aided in his torment,"_ Mother Nature started sternly. _"A Seasonal just as important as you! You saw his anguish where I did not, knew of something beneath the surface- **Do not deny it!"**_ Her voice echoed across the hall, loud and imposing, forcing the Fall Governess Celiosa to close her mouth and hide, fearful, behind her siblings. Mother Nature allowed a painfully long amount of time to pass in silence, eyes glued to her Seasonals. Her... her children. And they were, weren't they? Here she was, scolding them like one does a child who does not listen.

Jack was her child too. 

_"Having the negative contact with him that you say you did, you three would have noticed his descent into madness. I failed to watch him, to keep him safe as is my duty. But **you** three, you three failed to do the same, to report to me, to be to him the family you are to each other! The family you are to me."_ Pained eyes fell to the floor, fists clenched and chest burning with an emotion she just couldn't tamp down on. She was worried. _'I am doomed.'_

Her children, for once, showed the shame Seraphina hoped they would. It just wasn't as soon as she would have liked. 

Freydin, the Summer Lord stepped forward. "You're right, Mother Nature- We treated him poorly." His voice was strained like it was difficult to speak, but nonetheless, he kept his emotions sincere. He was guilty but defiant. "Never before have you given us reason to treat him the same as we treat each other," There it was, the defiance- but Freydin wasn't done "I'm sorry, mother, we all are." Celiosa and Tánhuáng nodded, both with solemn expressions on their faces. 

Mother Nature looked down upon them, expressionless. "Then make it right." 

And she was gone. 

~~~~~~~~ 

Sandy sped towards the North Pole like the Devil himself was on his heels, a grin on his small face and eyes wide with excitement.

_'Jack has believers'_

So many, at least a thousand children believed in him by his own personal count! Maybe more!

_'Jack has believers!'_

It was so exciting, Jamie and his friends weren't his only believers anymore! Oh, Jamie missed Jack dearly- asking about him whenever Sandy passed by at night. The young boy always stayed up long enough to speak with the Sandman before being put to sleep, and Sandy always humored the child. He had, after all, helped defeat Pitch. If this news helped Jack at all, maybe he could be convinced to finally go outside. It wouldn't get rid of his problems, not by a long shot, but getting outside more would go a long way to aiding in his recovery.

Jamie would love to see the Winter Spirit again.


	5. This, That, Heartbreak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gold stood before White, a trace of hope in his hands.
> 
> Grey tinkered away with genetics and traits.
> 
> Green speaks to Gold, her chest heavy and fluttering, and finds him with a change of heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY SHIT MY DUDES, HELLO, TIS I THE PROCRASTINATOR. Geeze, i've been so lazy and just.. jumbled. Though that might be due to the fact that I haven't taken my meds in months and am surrounded by unsupportive, toxic family members but LMAO that's my life. Here, this is a chapter I was inspired to make due to a cool person commenting on the first fic in this series, telling me how much they loved the fic, and generally giving me a reason to keep writing this. Thank you, metaphoricalpluto, for your wonderful comment! <3

Sandy came barrelling through the workshop at high speeds, looking for Jack's room with a wide, beaming grin upon his face. Oh, if only he could have brought that wonderful, beautiful dream with him. But no, the Sandman would never dare to disrupt a slumbering child's unconscious thoughts, especially one such as special as this. Instead, he would go directly to Jack, empty-handed but full of hope, and tell him the good news. He passed the Yeti and Elves overhead as they ran about the building, darted through hallways and hidden paths, maneuvering with ease to his destination. As he approached the winter child's room, he began t hear a soft, melodic twitter- likely Jack's favorite companion, Baby Tooth, singing for him as Sandy has found she is wont to do.

He hovers by the door, taking a moment to listen to the peaceful tune, before carefully knocking upon the door.

"Hello?" Jack calls nervous, a normal tone of voice for him since entering the Guardians' care. Sandy swiftly sends sand under the door in response. "Come in," he speaks again, for the first time allowing Sandy proper entry without an escort. Ah, he hadn't thought of that in the excitement. "The door is unlocked..."

The plump little man passes into the room without issue, gazing upon the young man seated on his bed. The most significant detail, however, would be the massive amounts of ice in the room. 

Sandy must look alarmed, for Jack sighs and stands, walking to a pillar of ice slowly, rubbing a hand down the side almost... reverently. "It looks disturbing, but I like it, makes the room.. brighter." Understandable certainly, but the sight is grizzly. Beautiful, but with edges so sharp they hardly belie the emotions felt during their making. Sandy allowed himself to store this information away for later conversation, preferably with the snow spirit's mother-figure Toothiana, and waved his hands to gain Jack's attention.

"Yeah?" He asked, voice quiet and subdued. He was clearly calmed by Baby Tooth's presence and prior song. "What is it, Sandman?"

Sandy gave a silent cheer, with fireworks materializing above his head for flair. Good news, the Guardian signaled, very good indeed, spoke his signs, a pleased expression lighting his face. Sandy weaved the tale with his dream sand, excited and confident. As the tale went on, the child's expression grew wilder, more wonderous. Ah, Nick should be feeling that right now, he'll be happy to know Jack is expressing something other than distrust or fear. He soon finished the tale, and as he did, the smaller spirit was bombarded by the unusually loose and calm Jack, the young man allowing himself the moment of reprieve without question.

"I- Holy crap, I have... I have believers? More of them that I don't know? This- I... I actually feel... _good,_ for once..." Jack blew out through his nose in a sigh, expression one of mild confusion. Sandy suspected a pretty hard crash when he came down from the high Baby Tooth's music gives him. Speaking of the little hummingfairy, she was zipping about the room with her own excitement at the news, darting through Jack's hair and singing with relish and glee, tiny voice warbling in its beauty. "Can I have a moment, Sandy?" Jack asks, cupping his hands to his chest with an indiscernible look. Sandy nods, having done his duty and gives the winter child his much-needed space.

~~~~~~~~

Bunny, Aster, however one chooses to call him, he is still the same entity: An alien with cosmic ability. A right bastard with his head screwed on too tightly. A Pooka, the last.

Regardless, though, of these monikers, and his identity, Aster is not a humble male. A bit... less boisterous, yes, but not _humble,_ in the truest sense. And he was certainly not being humble right now, of all times, as he tinkered away with the flora of the world, determined and grinning like a madman. His unique abilities granted him a wide range of options for what he was doing now. Which, of course, was creating a whole new species of tree specifically for Jack. Oh, Nicholas would have himself a hayday if he knew just how soft the Pooka had gotten for Jack. 

He had to stay focused, though, no distractions. He'd be here a while yet.

Aster smiled at the small tree, the leaves a snow-pale green, so bright it seemed like a frosty blue, and its small branches were knotted and gnarled, the wood bark dark, and the tiny buds that clustered together like penguins in the Arctic, gave off a beautiful white, glossy sheen.

"I hope 'e likes it because I don't know how else to start off my long-arse apology."

~~~~~~~~

Tooth returned to the Workshop late, sun dim in the sky but staying ever above the horizon, and she murmured in worry.

She had been thinking of Sandy all night, unable to get him out of her head. But, it had been so long since such had happened, so long in fact that she'd almost, finally, forgotten about her affections entirely. Maybe not entirely, as her affections had been barely suppressed during the Pitch fiasco, but now they've come to rear their ugly head. Her chest heaved as she searched the premises for him, for Sanderson. It was less busy this time of day than it was any other time of the year thankfully, which eased her nerves.

Soon, Toothiana found him, floating ominously in a dimly lit hallway. Someone so small and cute should not be able to look so menacing, but maybe that was her anxiety. Slowly, she approached on fluttering wings, watching Sanderson play with tiny dreams, likely to pass the time.

"Sandy?" She inquired, biting her lip. "Can I speak with you?"

Of course, he agreed, following her into an empty room. He signaled his curiosity with a question mark, a prompt she stumbled over herself to follow. "I-" A nervous cough.

"I... Sandy, do you.. still have.. feelings, for me?" She was quiet and patient, though equally overwhelmed. Her heart raced as she waited silently for an answer. Her heart sunk when she received her answer:

No.

He didn't love her anymore, it seemed, her love goes unrequited. Sandy looked on concerned about Tooth's crestfallen expression, asking her in as gentle a way as sand could manage if she still had feelings for him.

She nodded, a tear streaming down her face. Sandy's face fell into a heartbroken visage.

Oh dear, he'd thought, attempting to come closer, to hold her- she backed away. "I need a moment," She'd said, "to process, to stay calm." She explained, chest twinging in pain as a hiccup-sob worked its way up her delicate throat.

A deep breath in, and out, and in one more. Tooth sighed, smiled, and flew away without another word.


End file.
